She said members of the public have also questioned their lack of PPE.

“The public is asking: ‘Where’s your mask? Why are you not in suits?’

"They are assuming that this is what we’re being given.

“The equipment we are being given is very limited in comparison to the hospital.”

But she says there are health workers in the community who have “even less equipment than we have”, including community domiciliary teams and carers.

“I think staff in the community are very much at risk.”

The Department of Health said there "is a pressure on supplies and we continue to actively review projected demand in light of the current circumstances".

"We are working tirelessly to source PPE from every viable source," continued the spokesperson.

"The minister has underlined the vital importance of distribution and deployment to all frontline settings - and stressed that all staff must know where to turn within their organisations when they have concerns or questions."

A spokesperson for the Belfast Health Trust said all staff were trained to wear PPE "in accordance with the most up-to-date national guidance from Public Health England, including the use of masks for all staff coming into contact with patients".

"We have no concerns about the level of PPE stock available to us," he said.

Contact Tracing

The district nurse also said a lack of routine testing is another concern for staff.

“You’ve just to continue to work until you present with symptoms,” she said.

“Any staff members who’ve come up positive, it’s not being traced back to the patients who they are seeing.”

Image caption
A consignment of PPE arrived in Northern Ireland on Monday

The nurse said the pandemic meant that she was not able to form the same relationship with her patients.

"You feel like you’re taking a step back and you’re not giving them the same care as someone else.

“I am frightened at the memories these people are going to have.

“And a lot of these patients are going to die on their own because we’re trying to say, like the hospital, people have to keep their distance.”